Apologies to the Lone Ranger.
Silver the metal has been one of the best performers over the past few years, benefiting from massive central bank easing and currency printing. Silver was sitting for years well under $6 per ounce but had a resurgence.
BIG PICTURE
The general result of money printing is higher inflation and speculators are fleeing currencies and finding a safer home in hard metals. Gold naturally is a great substitute but silver has also become a great alternative. Mined all over the world and concentrated in few areas of the US, silver has recently come to life, reaching near all-time highs in April 2011 before falling hard, nearly 50% of its value.
THE PLAY
Today, the metal sits about 10% away from an annual high. From a technical view the chart is strong, bullish and silver appears to have higher prices ahead. To play the metal one would look to use the ETF called SLV, but I prefer to play the individual mining stocks.
BEST NAMES
Among the best names include Pan American Silver (PAAS), Silver Standard (SSRI) and even Goldcorp (GG) (hybrid gold/silver company). My favorite play is Silver Wheaton (SLW). The Vancouver company operates mines in North America and Europe and boasts some of the best production among its peers.
The chart below shows the solid breakout from late summer and how the technicals still show this in favor at least until the spring. With silver about 30% below its all-time high this name and others have room to move.
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Read more metals coverage here:
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